Théogène Turatsinze[1] (born "in the northern part" of Rwanda c.1970,[2] murdered between 11 and 15 October 2012 in Mozambique[3]) was a Rwandan businessman.
After undergraduate studies in his home country, he moved to Mozambique, "where he worked for several years", then completed his studies with a master's degree in management at the Australian Catholic University in Sydney.[2][4] He returned to Rwanda, and became the Managing Director of the Rwanda Development Bank (BRD) in 2005.[3] He was dismissed from that position in 2007.[5] He moved once more to Mozambique, where he served as deputy rector of the São Tomãs de Moçambique Catholic University until his death.[6]
He went missing on 11[5] or 12 October 2012, in Maputo.[3] His body was found on the 15th, tied up and "floating in the sea".[6] Police in Mozambique "initially indicated Rwandan government involvement in the killing", then retracted the accusation.[7] Turatsinze was thought to have "had access to politically sensitive financial information related to certain Rwandan government insiders", relating to the funds of the Development Bank.[7] His murder, which remains unsolved, was described as part of a "history of mysterious deaths" of opponents or perceived opponents of the Paul Kagame government in Rwanda. The newspaper The Zimbabwean related it to the deaths of Seth Sendashonga (a high-level political opponent murdered in Kenya in 1998), Jean-Léonard Rugambage (a reporter murdered in Kigali in 2010), and Charles Ingabire (a reporter murdered in Uganda in 2011); it also mentioned Kayumba Nyamwasa, a former member of Rwandan Intelligence who survived an assassination attempt in 2010.[5] Similarly, the UK's Channel 4 News linked Turatsinze's deaths to those mentioned, as well as to that of politician André Kagwa Rwisereka, murdered in 2010, noting the "allegations of Rwandan government involvement".[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Urupfu rwa Théogène Turatsinze ruravugisha menshi!", The Rwandan, 17 October 2012
- ^ a b "Hundreds bid farewell to Turatsinze" Archived 2012-10-27 at the Wayback Machine, The New Times, 26 October 2012
- ^ a b c "Rwanda demands inquiry into Turatsinze’s death"[permanent dead link], Kenya Daily Eye, 18 October 2012
- ^ "Bwana Turatsinze Yazize Gufasha IMF na Banki Yisi Guperereza ku Rwanda.", Inyenyeri News, 17 October 2012
- ^ a b c "Murder of Rwandan banker: Police admit no progress" Archived 2014-08-09 at the Wayback Machine, The Zimbabwean, 19 October 2012
- ^ a b "Top Rwandan banker murdered in Mozambique", Agence France-Presse, 18 October 2012
- ^ a b "2012 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - Rwanda", United States Department of State
- ^ "Rwanda timeline: Descent into tyranny", Channel 4 News, 25 November 2012